Low Sodium Foods

• Start your diet by creating a weekly menu that includes foods low in sodium, which will be safe for you to consume without worry. Begin with fresh fruits and vegetables. A banana only has one milligram of sodium per serving while a baked potato only has six provided you don't load it up salted butter. Unsalted popcorn can be used as a snack food while dinners can feature up to six ounces of fresh meat or poultry. To add flavor to your meals without loading up on sodium, use nutmeg, sage, dill, or green pepper which all contain little to no sodium. Dessert lover should limit their intake of ice cream to half a cup which contains 42 milligrams of sodium. Restrict your liquid intake to fruit juices, coffee, tea and water as soda contains added sodium. Check with your doctor or nutritionist to calculate your ideal sodium intake for the diet.
  
  

Check the Label

• Before picking up food at the grocery store, check the label to ensure the sodium content is within your diet restrictions. While foods will list sodium in their nutritional values, also check the ingredients for any additive containing a form of sodium such as sodium citrate. Baking soda and baking powder also contain sodium, which should be excised from your daily intake. When you're at a restaurant, ask the server if they offer any low sodium alternatives, and when in doubt, stick to salads as their meats may contain high amounts of sodium.
  
  

Foods to Avoid

• If you've lived off of frozen meals then be prepared to shift your entire eating habits when on a low sodium diet. Packaged meals such as those found in the frozen food section of the grocery store are filled with sodium. A Weight Watchers Lasagna meal feature 540 mg of sodium, almost 24 percent of the normal recommended allowance. Stay away from these prepackaged foods. Canned vegetables can also be high in sodium, meaning you should look for fresh produce whenever possible. A rule of thumb is the longer a food can last before it spoils, the more sodium it is likely to have. The same applies to meat, pick up meat directly from the deli or butcher and avoid any canned meats or meats that come pre breaded, as this breading will boost the sodium level. Look for lower sodium alternatives to foods such as peanut butter and crackers. Many food companies offer these for dieters looking to cut back on the ingredient.